Characteristics Leading Teachers to Nominate Secondary Students as Gifted in Spain

Abstract

What are the characteristics leading teachers to nominate gifted students in Spain? To answer this question, several demographic (i.e., gender, grade) and psychological (i.e., multiple intelligences, emotional intelligence, intellectual aptitude, and divergent thinking) characteristics of 563 secondary students nominated as gifted by their teachers were analyzed. Results showed a general gifted profile of the nominated students defined by higher scores in their naturalist and social intelligences, stress management, and verbal, mechanical, and spatial reasoning. Additional analysis indicated that students’ gender and grade also influenced teachers’ nominations of gifted students. Based on the associations among the demographic and psychological characteristics included in this study, nominated students could be classified in five specific gifted profiles, namely, moderately gifted students, social-emotionally gifted students, artistically gifted students, intellectually gifted students, and generally gifted students. Discussion of the limitations of the study, directions for future research, and educational implications of the study are provided.